Nanoparticles such as carbon nanotubes tend to be complex mixtures of different species that have divergent physical and chemical properties. Although carbon nanotubes exhibit great potential in applications such as diagnostic probes and nanoelectronics as well as structural additives in nanocomposites, their use can be limited due to the divergent properties. For example, an ensemble of synthesized carbon nanotubes typically include metallic and semiconducting species, which do not produce desired conduction when used in combination for use in certain devices and thus require separation for practical application in a device. Conventional separation of carbon nanotubes includes density gradient ultracentrifugation (DGU) and liquid chromatography (LC). These current separation methods use expensive equipment, are time-consuming, and produce a low yield of separated components. Moreover, DGU and LC are perforated with a small sample volume that is confined to a size of a centrifuge or chromatographic column.
Thus, development of an efficient process for separation of nanoparticles would be advantageous and would be favorably received in the art.